Wednesday, 11 September 2013

Egyptian soldiers kill 9 militants in Sinai operation.

Egyptian soldiers kill 9 militants in Sinai operation.

File photo shows Egyptian soldiers in military vehicles proceedin toward the al-Jura district in el-Arish in northern Sinai.

Press Tv | 11 Sep 2013 ::The Egyptian military has killed nine militants in the Sinai Peninsula, where the army has launched a major clearing operation against extremist insurgents.

The strike was carried out by army troops, who backed by helicopter gunships, attacked militant hideouts in the restive area, a military source said, on condition of anonymity, on Tuesday.

Ten others were also arrested in the raids, he added.

On Monday, the army also discovered explosives, weapons and ammunition during its operation in the villages of el-Mahdiya and Naga Shabana.

Egypt launched a major military offensive against extremists in Sinai on September 7, after months of clashes with militants.

The army has described the campaign as "the largest military operation to purge Sinai of terrorism."

Nearly 30 militants have been killed in the operations over the past three days.

Violence in Sinai has intensified since Egypt’s first democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi was ousted by the military in early July, with militants launching near-daily attacks on security forces. (Courtesy:PressTv)